LED lights

[Steve W]

I am confused about how many LED lights I would need to replace a 150 w MH. Should I assume a 1 to 1 wattage relationship? The things I have read seem to indicate that the LEDs are more efficient in transmitting light to the aquarium than MHs, fluorescent T5s, or CFs, but nothing I have read tells me how to compensate for the increased efficiency or even how much more efficient the LEDs are.

Does anyone know how many LEDs I need for a 72 gallon tank or a 24 gallon tank (the 72 gallon is 22 inches deep and the 24 gallon is 20 inches deep)?

Steve W

24 gallon nano with a 72 gallon pending.

 

[Runner]

If you use the 3 Watt Cree XP-G whites and mix in the Cree XR-E royal blues to get the color right (about 50/50), it should take about 18 to be roughly equal to a 150W MH. You would want to add optics to them, though, for deeper tanks. I would imagine over a 72G you would want to make two fixtures with 24 LEDs each with optics to focus the beams. These could hang like you would a MH fixture.

You could get better economy, though, if you concentrate the LEDs over where there would be corals and supplement with a long bulb to give some uniform lighting where you have open areas. With LEDs, we don't have to be stuck in the old methods of lighting.

One of the cool things about optics is that in addition to getting more PAR deeper into the tank, it can allow the LEDs to be placed so you get almost no light on the glass -- thereby severely inhibiting algae growth.

 

[Steve W]

Thanks

This is the kind of information I've been looking for.

Steve W

 

[Runner]

That was the Cliff Notes version distilled from 100's of pages in the DIY forums. If you have a specific application or need any questions answered, I'd be glad to help. I even have a few odds and ends that might be useful if you go ahead and make your own.